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What you need to know

Universal Credit (UC) childcare element reimburses up to 85% of eligible childcare costs, up to a maximum amount.

The maximum amount increased in June 2023, from £646.35 to £950.92 for one child and from £1,108.04 to £1,630.15 for two or more children.

It increased again in April 2024 to £1014.63 for one child and to £1,739.37 for two or more children.

To qualify for the childcare element, the claimant (or, where a couple is claiming, both claimants), must usually be in paid work or have accepted an offer of paid work and pay for childcare for the relevant child or young person.

UC households can also make use of other types of childcare, which do not require the childcare element. These include the wider government offer of free childcare for pre-school children.

Read further information on the childcare offer for UC claimants.

Households receiving the childcare element

Figure 1: Universal Credit households receiving childcare element, November 2022 to November 2024

In November 2024, 177,000 households received the childcare element, of which 143,000 were single households and 34,000 were couples. The number of UC households receiving childcare element has increased by 6% since November 2023, reflecting the overall increase in the number of households on UC.

In June, July and August 2024, the number of households receiving the childcare element also fell slightly. This is in line with similar falls in previous years and is likely to be because households use childcare less during holiday periods.

Figure 2: Universal Credit households receiving childcare element, by age of youngest child, November 2024

More than half of households (53%) receiving the childcare element have a youngest child aged 3 years or younger, with the number of households decreasing as the age of youngest child increases.

Average amount of childcare element

Figure 3: Mean amount of Universal Credit childcare element, November 2022 to November 2024

In November 2024, the average (mean) amount of childcare element was £400. This has increased slightly from £390 in November 2023, which is likely to be due to the rise in the maximum amounts in April 2024 and also childcare costs increasing.

Figure 4: Distribution of Universal Credit childcare element amounts, November 2024

In November 2024, over half of households (54%) receiving the childcare element received £300 or less.

Figure 5: Mean Universal Credit childcare element amount by age of youngest child, November 2024

The average amount of childcare element varied with the age of the youngest child in the household. In November 2024, the average amount was higher than average  for households with children who were 3 or younger and also those with children who were 11 or older.

Figure 6: Mean Universal Credit childcare element amount by region, November 2024

The average amount of childcare element was lowest for households in South West England (£260) and highest for households in London (£650). Since November 2023, the average amount of childcare element has decreased in some regions (East Midlands, East of England, South East, South West and Yorkshire & The Humber), stayed the same in the West Midlands and increased in other regions. The average amount of childcare element in London has increased by 10% since November 2023, compared to an increase of 3% in Great Britain as a whole.

There is more variation at a lower geographical level. For example, the mean amount of childcare element in the parliamentary constituency of Birmingham Ladywood is over twice as much (£800) than the West Midlands as a whole (£380) and more than three times as much as the parliamentary constituency in the region receiving the least amount, South Shropshire (£250).

Households receiving maximum childcare element amounts

Figure 7: Universal Credit households receiving the maximum amount of childcare element as a proportion of households receiving childcare element, by month, November 2022 to November 2024

In November 2024, 3% of households receiving the childcare element received the maximum amount. In London, 8% of households receiving the childcare element received the maximum amount (see table 12, supplementary data).

Usage of the childcare element

We can compare the number of households receiving the childcare element to an estimate of the number who might be able to claim it. This estimate is the number of Universal Credit households with children aged 16 or younger in which all claimants are earning.

Figure 8: Universal Credit households receiving childcare element as a proportion of households where everyone is earning with a child aged up to and including 16, November 2022 to November 2024

In November 2024, 13% of UC households with children and in which all claimants were earning received the childcare element. This proportion has remained broadly consistent for around two years.  

This figure was similar for single households and couples (14% and 12% respectively) and is broadly similar across all regions of the UK (see table 11, supplementary data).

This percentage does not represent the proportion of UC households that use childcare, since it is likely that some households make use of other forms of childcare that do not require the childcare element. These include the wider government offer of free childcare for pre-school children and friends and family helping with childcare.

Figure 9: Universal Credit households receiving childcare element as a proportion of households where everyone is earning with a child aged up to and including 16, banded by age of youngest child, November 2024

In UC households with children of pre-school age (aged 4 or younger), 29% of households with everyone earning received the childcare element. For households whose youngest child was of primary school age (5 to 11), the proportion was lower (11%). For households whose youngest child was of secondary school age (12+), the proportion was lower still (less than 1%).

Figure 10: Universal Credit households receiving childcare element as a proportion of households where everyone is earning with a child aged up to and including 16, by age of youngest child, November 2024

The proportion receiving the childcare element was highest for households whose youngest child was two years old. For households with older children, the proportion was progressively lower as the age of the youngest child increased.

About these statistics

These statistics have been classed as official statistics in development.

All figures in this publication are derived from Universal Credit administrative data.

Figures are provisional and may be subject to minor change. This is partly because a household may claim childcare for previous months. This means that a household could still claim childcare for any of the months listed in this publication, so that the number of recipients for any given month may increase slightly when revised in subsequent releases. For the same reason, the figures listed in this publication have changed slightly (and usually increased) compared to those in previous publications.

All figures are for Great Britain only and include only households where Universal Credit was in payment.

Figures are rounded according to the following convention: numbers between 0 to 1,000 are rounded to the nearest 10, numbers between 1,001 to 10,000 are rounded to the nearest 100, numbers between 10,001 to 100,000 are rounded to the nearest 1,000 and numbers between 100,001 to 1,000,000 are rounded to the nearest 10,000. In the case of broad ranges, a single convention may be used. Percentages are rounded to the nearest 1% where appropriate. For this reason, totals may not add up exactly.

Childcare element is paid for childcare for children aged up to and including 16. It is theoretically possible for the childcare element to be received for a 17-year-old: this happens when the child turns 17 in the last assessment period for which they are eligible. We expect this number of cases to be very small and we have excluded any such cases from our data.

For each month, the number of households receiving the childcare element is defined as the number of households who received some amount of childcare element for an assessment period that started in that month. An assessment period is one calendar month in duration starting from the date of which a UC claim is made. By counting households this way, rather than counting when a household is paid, the statistics more closely reflect when childcare is used.

When the maximum amount of childcare element increased in June 2023 and April 2024, it increased for assessment periods starting in June 2023 and April 2024 respectively.

When information is given for regions of Great Britain, this is derived from the claimants’ residential address. Not all claimants have a valid address listed, which means that a small number of households have “Unknown” region information.

For the full data, see the Supplementary data tables.

Further information and feedback

Lead Statistician: Graham Walmsley  

Analyst: Thane Than  

Email: ucad.briefinganalysis@dwp.gov.uk